I 



THROUGH THE WATER-DROPS 119 



Towards evening, a flock of starlings come down 

 amongst the peewits, and some of them bathe, 

 too, in one of the little dykes that run across the 

 marshlands. There is a constant spraying of water 

 into the air, which, sparkling in the sun's slanting 

 rays, makes quite a pretty sight. On the edge of 

 the dyke, with th.Q jets d'eaux all about him, a snipe 

 stands sunning himself, on a huge molehill of black 

 alluvial earth. He stands perfectly still for a very 

 long time, then scratches his chin very deftly with 

 one foot, and stands again. Were I an artist I 

 would sketch this scene — this solitary statuesque 

 snipe, on his great black molehill, against the silver 

 fountains rising from the dark dyke ; beyond, 

 through the water-drops, peewits and starlings, 

 busy or resting, all in the setting sun — " im Abend- 

 sonnenscheiny The starlings are constantly moving, 

 and often fly from one part of the land to another. 

 With the peewits it is difl^erent. They do not move 

 about, to nearly the same extent. To watch and 

 wait seems to be their principle, and when they 

 do move, it is but a few steps forward, and then 

 stationary again. It appears as if they waited for 

 worms to approach the surface of the ground, for, 

 sometimes, they will suddenly dart forward from 

 where they have long stood, pitching right upon 

 their breasts, securing a worm, and pulling it out 

 as does a thrush — herons, by the way, will often go 

 down like this, in the act of spearing a fish — or they 

 will advance a few steps and do the same, as though 

 their eye commanded a certain space, in which they 

 were content to wait. 



Starlings, as I have often noticed, seem to enjoy 



